Advice Beneath Starry Eyes
by fssquiggles
Summary: After a terrible fallout between Lily and her boyfriend, Lily is devastated and dwelling on deep insecurities. She manages to find comfort from an unexpected source, her big brother James. Of course James can be serious. Sirius IS his middle name...


**DISCLAIMER: I don't own any of these characters, J.K. Rowling does.**

**By the way, this is next generation James Sirius Potter and Lily Luna Potter.  
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><p><span>Advice Beneath Starry Eyes<span>

Lily Luna Potter sighed as she stared up at the twinkling, night sky. She had managed to climb up onto the roof of Hogwarts, a feat she would have been quite proud of if she weren't feeling so horrible. Her eyes watered whenever she thought of what Michael had done. She kept reminding herself that she shouldn't be crying over some stupid _boy._ She was invincible. She was the spitting image of her mother, in features _and_ personality. What she should have been doing, instead of bawling like a baby, was to march back into the Slytherin Common room and give that git a piece of her mind.

More tears streamed down Lily's face. Why couldn't she be more like her mother? People would always tell her how much she resembled her mother. _"Except for the eyes,"_ they would say. _"She has her father's eyes." _Lily knew she'd never be able to live up to the expectations. She might be independent; she might have a temper as fiery as the color of her hair, but she would never meet the expectations to be like her mother, or, for that matter, her namesake. She wasn't even a Gryffindor.

Lily pulled her knees up to her chest, the stars blinking far too brightly, as the tears trickled down her cheek. It seemed as if all the insecurities she ever felt was trying to escape from her body, through her tears.

"Lily? What are _you_ doing up here?" James' voice made Lily jump.

"N-Nothing. Just sitting," Lily called back, trying to steady her voice. She quickly wiped away her tears, smiling, as James appeared, his hair as unkempt as ever.

James sat down on Lily's right. From up close he realized that his little sister had been crying. He sighed. Lily knew he didn't like it when she cried.

"What's wrong, Lils?" James asked, quietly. Lily shook her head.

"Nothing's wrong. What could possibly be wrong? I'm fine," Lily winced slightly at how fake she sounded. Quickly, she changed the subject, "Anyway, what are you doing up here so late at night?"

James smirked, "I don't think you want to know, Lils. It'd probably be best if you knew as little as possible, really." He winked. Lily looked at him curiously but decided to not question him. She really didn't want to get involved in one of his pranks.

James really was living up to Granddad's name, wasn't he? He was an excellent Quidditch player, looked a lot like Granddad, was one of the best pranksters in the school, and he was even a Gryffindor. Lily's eyes stung. Even Albus was a Gryffindor.

"I heard that you and Michael had a row," James said sourly, after a few moments of silence. James didn't take it too well when he found out Lily had a boyfriend. Actually, James fainted when he found out. Though that was probably because he and Fred had stumbled upon Michael and her snogging in a broom closet. James made a face, obviously recalling the broom closet memory.

"How did you hear about that?" Lily asked, trying to hide her surprise. Her eyes stung and she blinked several times, trying to keep her tears at bay. Just thinking of Michael made her eyes sting.

"News travels fast in Hogwarts, baby sister, especially when most of the school could hear you yelling in the first place," James told her, sounding quite serious. "What did that git do to you?" Lily looked up at him. James was never serious. He was usually the one cracking jokes and smiling like an idiot, specifically during the most inappropriate times.

"I-I'm fine. Really, James." Unfortunately Lily's voice cracked and fresh tears spilled down her face. She grimaced. She could feel James's eyes practically staring into her soul.

"I'd have to be an idiot to think you're telling the truth." Lily knew she couldn't avoid telling him any longer. He'd find out eventually, anyway.

"Well, basically, I caught M-Michael snogging another…another girl," Lily told him, her voice faltering. She was determined to keep her dignity, and stop crying, but a few tears managed to escape. James opened his mouth, his eyebrows knitted in fury.

Lily wasn't able to stop though, so, while avoiding James's gaze, she continued speaking, "I yelled at him for a bit and I-I said some nasty things." She began to cry at the thought of what he had said, afterwards.

"He began yelling at me. He told me every thing that was wrong with m-me, with…with us. In front of _everyone. _And then he said he was _glad _we were finished and called me a sla… He managed to turn the whole situation _on me_. And I didn't do anything back. I ran away like a blubbering idiot." Lily said, sadly, looking up at her brother.

James sat there open-mouthed, his face contorted in rage. His voice shook with sudden anger. "I'm going to kill him. How dare he do that to my baby sister? I'm going to kill him. I swear I'm going to _kill him._" James began thinking of what kind of prank would make Michael suffer the most. He nearly slipped off the roof.

"_James_," Lily chastised, in a dejected voice. Lily looked tired. James stared at his little sister, his anger subsiding, and realized just how much she had grown. She was crying over _boys _now. He grimaced at the thought. She was beginning to question her place in the world and her identity. She'd probably start being an angst-ridden teenager soon. It was just a matter of time. According to Dad, that kind of thing starts in the Fifth Year. Also, James knew from experience that Dad was right.

"You're not my baby sister anymore," James sighed.

Lily rolled her eyes, "Of course not. I'm _fifteen_, not a baby."

"Blimey. Fifteen already? I'm getting _old._" James scrunched his eyebrows together, worriedly. Lily still looked really upset. He blinked, remembering what he meant to say earlier. "What I was trying to say was that I understand how you're feeling. Wait…listen to me, Lils. I know how it feels. And I'm pretty sure half the family knows how it feels, too."

Lily looked at him with a half hopeful, half angry expression. "Do you even know what I'm feeling James? I'm pretty sure you've never been cheated on."

He grinned. "Oh, Lily. I'm too good-looking to be _cheated on_. Nobody can resist my charm."

"You're not helping James."

James smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I meant that I know what it's like to live your life feeling like you've got to fill someone else's shoes. Fred knows it, Al knows it, Teddy knows it, Victoire knows it, and even Dom knows it. We _are_ all children of war heroes, yeah?"

Lily stared at James with watery eyes, still looking like she disgraced the whole family or something. James sighed, "Lily," He threw an arm around her shoulder, "We both know you're not _this _upset because some git cheated on you." Lily looked away, unwilling to meet her brother's eyes. James smiled sadly, "Whatever that arse told you; whatever his words triggered in that mental little head of yours, needs to be forgotten right now. There's a whole clan of people who love you, Lils."

A full minute passed before Lily spoke, "I can't forget it, though. I'm nothing like the rest of the family. I'm not even a…" She cut herself off. Lily never ever admitted that insecurity to anyone, especially not her brothers.

"A Gryffindor?" James finished for her. Lily gave a tiny nod, still staring off over the Hogwarts grounds. He sighed, "Did I ever tell you about the day you were sorted?" Lily shook her head, signaling that she was still paying attention. "Well, Al and I were waiting for you to be sorted, along with Fred, Dom, and the others," James laughed at the memory, "I was bloody nervous, mind you. My little sister was getting sorted! It was a nerve-racking experience, almost like being sorted myself. I was absolutely terrified you would be sorted somewhere else. What if you were sorted into Slytherin?"

Lily didn't say anything. James's rambling really wasn't helping. She didn't want to know about how disappointed he was. "Then, Al told me something Dad had told him before he boarded the train for the first time. Al told me that long ago, the Sorting Hat wanted to put Dad in Slytherin." Lily was staring at James. She had never heard that story before. James grinned, "There was something else Al said. Something about choices, but I don't really remember. Anyway, my point is, a few minutes before your sorting I realized that I didn't really care about which house you would be in, as long as you bake me those amazing cookies every Christmas." Lily snorted. James _would_ bring those up right now. "Slytherin's a cool house, Lils. Not as brilliant as Gryffindor, but only because I'm in it."

Lily punched James in the arm, smiling despite herself. She wiped her face with the back of her hands, "Slytherin is much better than Gryffindor."

James held out his hands, and moved them up and down as if weighing something, "Slytherin or Gryffindor? Snakes or Lions? I think we both know the answer to that one, Loony Lily."

Lily crossed her arms, rolling her eyes at the old nickname, "We've got Merlin, James."

James chuckled, "Well,_ damn_. You win this round, little one."

Lily giggled at his idiocy. She still felt sad but she had a feeling that this kind of sadness would only heal with time.

They both sat quietly for a long time before James spoke again, "Lily?"

"What?"

"You should talk to Slughorn sometime. He says you remind of someone he used to know." Lily widened her eyes, curiously. James winked at her, before getting up and beckoning her towards the window they had entered through. Lily had tiny inkling as to who she reminded Slughorn of, but she ignored it. She was nothing like her Grandmum, right?

"James?" Lily called. James stopped, turning to face her

"What?"

Lily paused before engulfing her big brother in a hug she only saved for special (rare) occasions, "Thank you. I reckon you're probably one of the best big brothers ever."

James ruffled her hair, "Probably?" Lily nodded. James pulled away, gasping in mock offense. "My little sister is probably one of the rudest sisters around." Lily only shrugged, and James grinned ruffling her hair once more, before moving carefully back towards the castle window.

James pulled himself up over the ledge and back into the castle. "James!" Lily called, "Give me a hand, would you?"

James stuck his head out the window, grinning like a loon, "I don't help rude people."

"_James!"_ Lily protested.

"By the way, do you know which bed Michael sleeps in? Wait a second…please don't answer that. I'd rather not know whether or not you know about that…You know what! Never mind! I'll just go ask Fred and Dom to help me out," James rambled on, a thoughtful look on his face, before he disappeared over the window ledge. Lily, who had been trying to pull herself up, glared up in his direction.

"James! Don't you _dare_!" Lily yelled.

James stuck his untidy head back out the window; "You really didn't expect me to _not _do anything to the prat, did you? That's _cute._"

Before Lily could object any further, James waved down at her, "See ya later, Lils!" He ducked under the window, completely disappearing from view.

"_James Sirius Potter!_ Get your arse back here right _now_! JAMES!" Lily shrieked, as a stream of disconnected laughter drifted down from the open window.

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><p><strong>It's soooo weird writing a story where Lily and James are siblings instead because I ship Lily Evans and James Potter so hard LOL<strong>

**Anyway, I've always imagined Lily Luna as a Slytherin instead of Albus and I just love sibling stuff and when I found this in my old folder I just HAD to finish it. Lily has a pretty fierce headcanon because she's the daughter of Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley. I want to write soooo much on the next generation but here ya go!**

**Reviews are like cookies and ice cream, but virtual. **

**xx fssquiggles**


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